Post by oksaradt on Aug 12, 2011 13:29:30 GMT -5
Unintended Blinds
I think these can make the best training situations for handler and dog. The potential for it becoming a bad experience for either dog and/or handler is there. It's up to the handler to make it a positive experience for the dog and for both to grow out of it.
Ok, what the heck am I talking about?
A blind is defined as a problem where the handler doesn't know where the scent source(s) are. It's not a double blind as the handler knows how many and may know what type they are. How does it become unintended?
One of the weaknesses of team training is the time factor. With HRD, at team training we scramble out first and make our hides so that there is time for the scent to diffuse into the area and it becomes a somewhat honest problem. I can say "somewhat honest" as most real searches involve remains that have been in place for days, weeks, months, years, decades, centuries, and even older for the real historic dogs. Yet, most handlers put their bones and/or teeth out then work them an hour later. On my personal problems that I set up for my dogs, I like to leave the bones out a couple of days (I've lost three bones in 12 years to critters).
Sometimes the environment plays havoc with our training program. In Oklahoma, we've experienced two months of 100+F heat and mostly drought. My land has been like the ignored child at a baseball game team creations when it comes to rain lately. I've watched storms skirt around us mere miles away only to watch the dirt continue to turn to dust.
Yesterday, a major storm system is on radar heading my way. Just like pre-snow, I ran out and proceeded to place three mounds of seven historic-level teeth.
(Historic level teeth have no tissue what so ever in or on them. The roots have popped due to the cleaning process. All that's left is the tooth itself, just like in an old grave.)
In my placement, I decided to run them all in a shallow wash. Due to the drought, many of my trees have lost their leaves, so I had fall-like cover. I found little depressions along this wash of some 180 feet in length and placed the teeth down in those. At each spot, I located landmarks for intersections so that I'd have a good idea of where they went.
In two hours, we got 0.75 inches of rain and all my teeth became buried in their locations, my visual markers no longer valid as they could have rolled with the water.
I discovered my situation this morning when I intended to work in the cool of the day before heat returned. I walked the general area and surveyed the blessing nature had bestowed upon me. Mother Nature and I have a love/hate relationship and I could hear her laughing with the wind.
Silting action could be see through out my tiny wash and the teeth were no where to be seen. I now had shallow buried problems....an unintentional blind.
The older, experienced dog got to work first and I let him free search to tell me if there was any scent. He got into the area and then we went into a cemetery-like grid, 180 feet by 50 feet. I was slightly disoriented, so I told Murphy to get closer on his first find. He went out about three feet then came back to the exact same spot, a bit ticked with me and brushed the ground just enough with his paw to expose a tooth under the silt. I was properly chastised as a handler and profusely rewarded him accordingly with praise. Murphy prefers hotdogs after the ball throw and thought I was screwing with him with the added-on praise instead of more "coin of the realm". My mind right, we proceeded to grid the rest of the area and located the other shallow burials with me having to work it in the mind of a real search rather than training.
I noticed when it came to the younger Thorpe's turn that he became more serious and would continue searching an area even if I asked him to move along. He stopped and indicated away from my now three known "graves." Having been properly chastised once, I went over to check with a "show me." He'd found one tooth that had floated up away from the pile before it was covered. His standing with me immediately elevated one more notch as he truly learned his handler was a scent moron and it was upon him to keep me straight.
Time worked: Murphy 16 minutes 20 seconds Thorpe: 12 minutes 48 seconds
(Shorter time for Thorpe can be attributed to help from Murphy's scent and by the handler in more of a comfort zone.)
Soil Type was Sandy loam
Air Temp was 72.0 to 73.9F
Rel Humidity was 81 to 77%
Wind Speed was E to SE at 4 to 8.7 mph
Sun/shade over area due to partial tree cover
Jim
I think these can make the best training situations for handler and dog. The potential for it becoming a bad experience for either dog and/or handler is there. It's up to the handler to make it a positive experience for the dog and for both to grow out of it.
Ok, what the heck am I talking about?
A blind is defined as a problem where the handler doesn't know where the scent source(s) are. It's not a double blind as the handler knows how many and may know what type they are. How does it become unintended?
One of the weaknesses of team training is the time factor. With HRD, at team training we scramble out first and make our hides so that there is time for the scent to diffuse into the area and it becomes a somewhat honest problem. I can say "somewhat honest" as most real searches involve remains that have been in place for days, weeks, months, years, decades, centuries, and even older for the real historic dogs. Yet, most handlers put their bones and/or teeth out then work them an hour later. On my personal problems that I set up for my dogs, I like to leave the bones out a couple of days (I've lost three bones in 12 years to critters).
Sometimes the environment plays havoc with our training program. In Oklahoma, we've experienced two months of 100+F heat and mostly drought. My land has been like the ignored child at a baseball game team creations when it comes to rain lately. I've watched storms skirt around us mere miles away only to watch the dirt continue to turn to dust.
Yesterday, a major storm system is on radar heading my way. Just like pre-snow, I ran out and proceeded to place three mounds of seven historic-level teeth.
(Historic level teeth have no tissue what so ever in or on them. The roots have popped due to the cleaning process. All that's left is the tooth itself, just like in an old grave.)
In my placement, I decided to run them all in a shallow wash. Due to the drought, many of my trees have lost their leaves, so I had fall-like cover. I found little depressions along this wash of some 180 feet in length and placed the teeth down in those. At each spot, I located landmarks for intersections so that I'd have a good idea of where they went.
In two hours, we got 0.75 inches of rain and all my teeth became buried in their locations, my visual markers no longer valid as they could have rolled with the water.
I discovered my situation this morning when I intended to work in the cool of the day before heat returned. I walked the general area and surveyed the blessing nature had bestowed upon me. Mother Nature and I have a love/hate relationship and I could hear her laughing with the wind.
Silting action could be see through out my tiny wash and the teeth were no where to be seen. I now had shallow buried problems....an unintentional blind.
The older, experienced dog got to work first and I let him free search to tell me if there was any scent. He got into the area and then we went into a cemetery-like grid, 180 feet by 50 feet. I was slightly disoriented, so I told Murphy to get closer on his first find. He went out about three feet then came back to the exact same spot, a bit ticked with me and brushed the ground just enough with his paw to expose a tooth under the silt. I was properly chastised as a handler and profusely rewarded him accordingly with praise. Murphy prefers hotdogs after the ball throw and thought I was screwing with him with the added-on praise instead of more "coin of the realm". My mind right, we proceeded to grid the rest of the area and located the other shallow burials with me having to work it in the mind of a real search rather than training.
I noticed when it came to the younger Thorpe's turn that he became more serious and would continue searching an area even if I asked him to move along. He stopped and indicated away from my now three known "graves." Having been properly chastised once, I went over to check with a "show me." He'd found one tooth that had floated up away from the pile before it was covered. His standing with me immediately elevated one more notch as he truly learned his handler was a scent moron and it was upon him to keep me straight.
Time worked: Murphy 16 minutes 20 seconds Thorpe: 12 minutes 48 seconds
(Shorter time for Thorpe can be attributed to help from Murphy's scent and by the handler in more of a comfort zone.)
Soil Type was Sandy loam
Air Temp was 72.0 to 73.9F
Rel Humidity was 81 to 77%
Wind Speed was E to SE at 4 to 8.7 mph
Sun/shade over area due to partial tree cover
Jim